Really, after three years of Sheldon-enforced celibacy, Amy (Mayim Bialik) deserved to trip the lip fantastic. The couple, known in cutesy circles as Shamy, have been inching toward the moment since Raj and Howard set them up through a dating service in Season 3.

Sheldon (Jim Parsons) has always been the central comedic curiosity on The Big Bang Theory. His quirks are the ones most likely to become running jokes, and his ambivalence — if not downright disdain — for romance has provided the biggest opportunity for social growth.

But now, in its seventh season, television’s No. 1 comedy is at a crossroads. Where once there were four hopelessly nerdy, hopelessly single guys pining for love, there are now three men in long-term relationships — Raj’s affinity for his dog, Cinnamon, notwithstanding.

The Big Bang Theory

“It’s undeniable that there’s been change and there’s been growth, especially for (Sheldon),” Parsons says in a video posted on the CBS website. “This is exciting because it opens doors for future stories, and we plan to make some.”

The question is, will those stories be as fresh and unexpected as those of early Big Bang episodes?

Yes, there’ll be many firsts for Sheldon and Amy, and there’s always the angst of Leonard and Penny’s (Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco) coupling to fill plots. Howard and Bernadette (Simon Helberg and Melissa Rauch) could even be on track for a baby soon.

But in its current incarnation — more focused on love relationships than rampant nerdiness — Big Bang plays more like Friends instead of the ode to geekdom it started out as.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that — for CBS, at least. Big Bang remains robust, with average weekly ratings of about 17 million in the U.S. and three million in Canada.

We’ll have to wait until the next new episode, on Feb. 27, to see the fallout of Sheldon and Amy’s surprise smooch. Will the writers pull the trigger on a more hands-on relationship? Or will Sheldon opt to keep it in his holster, so to speak?

• The Hollywood rounds on American Idol end with what Fox is billing as a special twist, and viewers will meet the top semifinalists. (8 p.m. ET/PT, 9 p.m. MT, CTV Two/Fox; 7 p.m. CT, CTV Two)

• Vogue editor Anna Wintour and designer Diane von Furstenberg are judges in the reality series The Fashion Fund, making its Canadian debut Thursday night. The show tracks 10 designers as they vie for a $300,000 US grant and one-year mentorship from the Council of Fashion Designers of America and Vogue Fashion Fund. (8 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. PT, 6 p.m. MT, 7 p.m. CT, Game TV)

It all started with a Big Bang theme song, courtesy of our own Barenaked Ladies. Now Canadians just can’t get enough of America’s geekiest sitcom.

The Big Bang Theory draws in between 3.5 and four million viewers in our home and native land every week. It’s about as attached to the No. 1 spot on the BBM charts as Wolowitz is to his mother.

This is nothing new; Chuck Lorre’s hilarious show about nerdy roommates Sheldon Cooper (Emmy fave Jim Parsons) and Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki), their brainy comic book-loving crew (Simon Helberg as Howard Wolowitz and Kunal Nayyar as Rajesh Koothrappali) and the hot girl across the hall, Penny (Kaley Cuoco), has been popular in Canada since it debuted in 2007.

The ratings have steadily climbed over the years, more recently thanks to its cast expansion to include Wolowitz’s cute-funny wife Bernadette (Melissa Rauch) and Sheldon’s scene-stealing girl-that’s-a-friend, Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik). But nearly four million viewers? That’s practically unheard of for a sitcom in Canada — never mind a Canadian sitcom. Even a good one.

On that note, before you and your BFF and your great-uncle and your neighbour’s cat’s hamster tune in to tonight’s BBT — in which asexual Sheldon is accused of sexual harassment at the university, with Regina King as a guest star — here’s a look at our five favourite (though obviously much-less-watched) Canadian-made sitcoms.

1. Corner Gas (2004-09): Comedian Brett Butt’s roadside CTV hit was the show that put small-town Saskatchewan on the map.

2. Little Mosque on the Prairie (2007-12): Apparently flat land is very funny. This CBC series focused on Muslims in the fictional town of Mercy was the show that put small-town Saskatchewan mosques on the map.

3. Less Than Kind (2008-13): Filmed in Winnipeg (more prairies), this inwardly funny show about teenager Sheldon (Jesse Camacho) growing up in a quirky Jewish family airs its fourth and final season next year.

4. Breaker High (1997-98): This YTV series following teens who went to school on a cruise ship wasn’t particularly successful or funny (or realistic), but it put Ryan Gosling on the map!

5. Life With Derek (2005-09): This Toronto-based youth sitcom was picked up by Disney Channel shortly after its debut. Eat your heart out, Hannah Montana.

(The Big Bang Theory, CTV/CBS, 8 ET/PT, 9 MT)

Three to See

• Flash mobs are back! At least according to Mobbed, the Howie Mandel-hosted series devoted to creating ridiculously huge ways for people to make announcements. The first season continues with a woman giving her boyfriend the ultimate ultimatum (hint: if you like it then you’d better put a ring on it) and another woman telling her husband she’s pregnant in back-to-back episodes. The pressure’s on. (Thursday, Fox, 8 ET/PT, 9 MT)

• Seeing as how we’re all still here, we might as well find something new to panic about. Supervolcano: Yellowstone’s Fury — Doc Zone’s look at Yellowstone National Park’s ready-to-erupt-and-end-the-world caldera co-written and produced by Toronto’s Dave Brady and Maryanne Alton — sounds like a great place to start. (Thursday, CBC, 9 ET/PT, 9 MT)

• Those crazy kids. MTV gets the new year off to a sleazy start with two new shows based on debauchery. Jersey Shore meets Honey Boo Boo in Buckwild, where a group of West Virginian young adults drink, have sex and argue while coming up with unique ways to live it up (dump truck pool, anyone?). It’s followed by the new Canadian series, Careless Teens, which follows three Ontario teenagers who like to staple their tongues and nail their body parts to everyday objects. We’d probably use a word other than “careless” to describe that kind of behaviour. (Buckwild, Thursday, MTV, 10 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. PT, 8 p.m. MT) (Careless Teens, Thursday, MTV, 11 p.m. ET, 8 p.m. PT, 9 p.m. MT)

]]>http://o.canada.com/entertainment/television/tv-thursday-the-big-bang-theory/feed0The Big Bang Theorypostmedianews1Early Buzz: Lindsay Lohan, Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez, Rihanna and morehttp://o.canada.com/entertainment/music/early-buzz-lindsay-lohan-justin-bieber-and-selena-gomez-rihanna-and-more
http://o.canada.com/entertainment/music/early-buzz-lindsay-lohan-justin-bieber-and-selena-gomez-rihanna-and-more#commentsFri, 30 Nov 2012 12:40:56 +0000http://o.canada.com/?p=160219]]>It’s the day after the day after Lindsay Lohan was arrested, which means it’s time for lawyer vs. source bickering to begin.

Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez are giving it another go. After Gomez was spotted backstage at Bieber’s NYC concert (or, Lindsay Lohan’s pre-drink, as some are calling it) , the two slipped out to have an adorable games night at Dave & Busters in Times Square. Because they’re kids and that’s what they do.

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Rihanna sent out another photo of her and Chris Brown because she hates America.

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Charlie Sheenoffered fellow Two and a Half Menmillionaire defector Angus T. Jones a new job.

But the tradition of “Turkey Dumping” — breaking up just in time for the holidays — doesn’t only apply to students returning home for the Thanksgiving break, where they can split from their left-behind girlfriends or boyfriends in person.

Celebrities, too, are experiencing the Turkey Dump. And a few more of them might be drowning their sorrows in gravy by the long weekend’s close, given the rumours that are persisting online today — even with 99 per cent of pro gossips already gorging at home on their Thanksgiving vacations.

First up: Mayim Bialik, the once-and-former Blossom, who’s now appearing on The Big Bang Theory. The 36-year-old actress announced that she and husband, Michael Stone, are ending their nine-year marriage. The couple has two young sons together — Miles, 7, and Fred, 4 — and Bialik, a prominent “mommy blogger,” broke the news through her Kveller.com parenting site.

“Divorce is terribly sad, painful and incomprensible for children. It is not something we have decided lightly,” Bialik wrote. “The main priority for us now is to make the transition to two loving homes as smooth and painless as possible,” she continued, adding that her “attachment parenting” style was not a factor in the decision to separate, and thanking readers for respecting the family’s privacy “as we negotiate this new terrain.”

Another couple with a young family — Kimora Lee Simmons and actor Djimon Hounsou — confirmed their separation through Twitter this week. Though not married, Simmons told Peoplein the past that they were “kind of engaged” and in 2009, they welcomed a son, Kenzo Lee Hounsou. “There have been quite a few hurtful rumors circulating. The truth is Djimon + I have been separated for some time,” Simmons Tweeted yesterday. Added the Baby Phat founder: “We have remained happy, loving, co-parenting friends + family. We all have much to be thankful for.”

Whatever “hurtful rumors” Simmons heard couldn’t possibly have made as much noise as the stories about two other celeb couples. RadarOnlineis claiming that Eddie Cibrian is fed up with married life. (The actor is married to LeAnn Rimes.) He’s “sick and tired of the chaos,” says some snitch. “He told her he needs some time alone to get his head together,” because he’s just so awfully busy not starring in The Playboy Club. Adds the source, “he’s checked out emotionally.”

And then there’s the persistent gossip that Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are experiencing some turbulence. Star ran a story claiming the couple has “barely seen each other in the past few months,” and as per their shadowy-as-usual source, they’ve been “spending a lot of nights apart” because of professional commitments. Says Star‘s snitch: “They are at a breaking point right now.”

All these rumours could be as dodgy as week-old Tofurky. One friend of Affleck’s told Gossip Cop that the Star report is “bullsh*t,” and the outlet notes that Garner and Affleck have frequently jetted out to be with each other when they can. (She was with Affleck when he promoted Argo in Paris, for example.)

But no matter how these stars are faring over the holiday weekend — and no matter whether they’re crying over a broken romance or a rumour that won’t die — they can at least take comfort in this:

Bialik is divorcing her husband of nine years, Mike Stone, the Big Bang Theory star announced via her twitter account Wednesday.

The actress, 36, tweeted a link to a blog post about the split with the message, “I’m beating the tabloids to it and posting this Divorce Statement.”

The post itself says that the pair decided to divorce “after much consideration and soul-searching,” and cites irreconcilable differences as the reason for the breakup.

Bialik and Stone have two sons, 7-year-old Miles and 4-year-old Frederick, together.

“Divorce is terribly sad, painful and incomprehensible for children. It is not something we have decided lightly,” Bialik wrote in her blog post. “The hands-on style of parenting we practice played no role in the changes that led to this decision; relationships are complicated no matter what style of parenting you choose.”

The actress added, “Our sons deserve parents committed to their growth and health and that’s what we are focusing on.”

Bialik’s post concludes, “We will be ok.”

]]>http://o.canada.com/entertainment/big-bang-theory-star-mayim-bialik-tweets-pre-thanksgiving-divorce-plans/feed0121122_MayimBialikreuterscanadacomEarly Buzz: Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez, Mayim Bialik, Emma Stone — and more!http://o.canada.com/entertainment/early-buzz-justin-bieber-and-selena-gomez-mayim-bialik-emma-stone-and-more
http://o.canada.com/entertainment/early-buzz-justin-bieber-and-selena-gomez-mayim-bialik-emma-stone-and-more#commentsThu, 22 Nov 2012 11:00:02 +0000http://o.canada.com/?p=154774]]>Why did Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez break-up? According to an inside source, it was because Bieber was texting other girls and it made Gomez look stupid. As for why she didn’t go to the AMAs with him — she was sick. And the “fight” at the sushi restaurant — she was just annoyed with the paparazzi. Oh, and what about locking Bieber out of her house? Yeah, the gate was just broken.

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Add Emma Stone to the sex tape list. Sources say that the starlet made an x-rated tape before she became famous.

In more sad news: Mayim Bialik and her husband of nine years, Michael Stone, are divorcing, too!

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Kim Kardashian plans on losing 10lbs (in case you care to know, and a source is revealing how! (Yay?)

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Ashlee Simpson was spotted partying with Pete Wentz and his new girlfriend at their son’s birthday party. Awwww!

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Take a peen inside Madonna‘s $23.5 million US pad that she’s trying to unload.

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]]>http://o.canada.com/entertainment/early-buzz-justin-bieber-and-selena-gomez-mayim-bialik-emma-stone-and-more/feed0121111_BiebermirandafurtadoBig Bang Theory cast breaks out into ‘Call Me Maybe’ flash mob during taping (with video)http://o.canada.com/entertainment/television/big-bang-theory-cast-breaks-out-into-call-me-maybe-flash-mob-during-taping-with-video
http://o.canada.com/entertainment/television/big-bang-theory-cast-breaks-out-into-call-me-maybe-flash-mob-during-taping-with-video#commentsThu, 15 Nov 2012 21:14:04 +0000http://o.canada.com/?p=151179]]>Big Bang Theory star Kaley Cuoco had only one dream: To have her fellow cast and crew break out in a live, choreographed flash mob on the set of their ratings juggernaut.

Thanks to her sister Bri and a certain Canadian singer, the blonde starlet’s fantasy became reality during the filming of tonight’s episode, “The 43 Peculiarity.”

“Finally the moment has come… All my dreams have come true…“ Cuoco wroteof the coordinated flash mob that took place during the October 23 taping in front of a live studio audience. “This literally was the best night of my entire life.”

Then she probably won’t like that her YA franchise frenemy Jennifer Lawrence is reportedly getting in on the action.

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Woah! Mayim Bialik was in a car accident which left her finger “almost completely severed … it was just hanging there.” Luckily, modern medicine saved the day. “[I] will keep all my fingers,” the former Blossom star tweeted.

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Get excited Kim Kardashian fans, there seems to be no end in sight for her dragging divorce.

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Drakeand Chris Brown are collaborating…as defendants in a new lawsuit brought against them for that bloody brawl last June.

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Joe Jonas is claiming Taylor Swift’s latest break up song, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” is not about him. Or John Mayer. But that doesn’t stop him from getting all gushy about it.

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In today’s crazy ex-Metallica members news, Megadeth singer Dave Mustaine is claiming the Aurora shooting massacre was staged by President Obama as a way to pass gun legislation.

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Shia LaBeouf is claiming that filming Transformers felt like “a finger up your ass.” He failed to specify if that digit was human or Autobot.

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The Silversun Pickups would like Mitt Romney to stop using their song.

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Congrats to Jimmy Kimmel on his new engagement to someone who is not Sarah Silverman (or Ben Affleck)

Imagine being stranded on an island — just you, your significant other and your newborn child. There are no parenting books or Internet. Instead, you rely on instinct to raise the baby.

This, according to Bill Sears, associate clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of California-Irvine School of Medicine and the author of more than 40 books on parenting, is attachment parenting. He coined the term in the 1980s, and it has remained controversial over the years.

One prominent proponent of attachment parenting is TV actress Mayim Bialik (The Big Bang Theory). Her new book, Beyond the Sling: A Real-Life Guide to Raising Confident, Loving Children the Attachment Parenting Way, talks about her own journey from child actress (Blossom) to neuroscientist (Ph.D. from UCLA in 2007) to confident mom of two young boys, Miles and Frederick.

“I came to parenting the way most of us do — knowing nothing and trying to learn everything,” says Bialik, 36, whose book discusses some of what she sees as major tenets of attachment parenting: breast-feeding, “co-sleeping” (baby in parents’ bed), wearing the baby in a sling and gentle discipline.

“For me, to see people like (singer) Gwen Stefani talking about breast-feeding and wearing her baby in a sling is tremendous. This is the best kind of trend there can be,” Bialik says.

Attachment parenting does come naturally, according to Samantha Gray, executive director of Attachment Parenting International. It allows you to feel connected through a secure attachment, so you’re less confused about your child’s needs — whether eating, sleeping or playing, she says.

Many critics of attachment parenting say it doesn’t allow parents to work outside the home or have their space. But Gray and Sears disagree; they say it allows working parents to reconnect with their children and provide the nurturing necessary for development.

“As a parent, it’s natural to want to be close to your infant,” says Tonya Altmann, spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics and author of Mommy Calls: Dr. Tanya Answers Parents’ Top 101 Questions About Babies and Toddlers. But she recommends safety precautions for sleeping and says infants should be in “their own safe environments” — on their backs in a crib.

“It’s your child. You’ll always have an attachment,” she says, but “as your child gets older, it’s important to give them space.” Space allows infants to learn to cue parents when they want to sleep or eat, and the earlier this is learned, the better, she adds.

Bialik, who hasn’t had a romantic getaway since before her kids were born, is content with her choice to stay close to them day and night. She does all the child rearing — with the help of her mostly stay-at-home husband — and lives life on what she calls a “smaller” scale.

She says parents need to lose the fear — “fear of being judged, fear of not being OK, fear that other people will think your kid is misbehaving, fear that other people will think you have no life.

“If everyone just took care of themselves and stopped worrying about what other people thought, I think a lot of this stuff would give way to intuition. That’s not to say there wouldn’t be women who would say, ’I don’t want to be home.’ There is room for that. I’m not a dictator. I’m not looking to fix the world. I’m looking to raise my kid.”

]]>http://o.canada.com/life/parenting/mayim-bialik-writes-book-on-attachment-parenting/feed06272562postmedianews1Mayim Bialik live chat: Beyond the Slinghttp://o.canada.com/life/parenting/315
http://o.canada.com/life/parenting/315#commentsTue, 19 Jun 2012 23:15:48 +0000http://staging.wp.canada.com/?p=315]]>Television star Mayim Bialik (Blossom, The Big Bang Theory) is the author of a new book, Beyond The Sling: A Real-Life Guide to Raising Confident, Loving Children the Attachment Parenting Way. In the book, Bialik advocates parenting techniques that are not universally accepted, such as co-sleeping, but that have brought happiness to her family. “A whole parenting industry has been created,” she says, “it seems, solely to confuse us.” Bialik, who has a doctorate in neuroscience, sorts through the issues and provides answers about what worked, and didn’t work, for her children and tells a story of her own journey as a mother. Her book is about “empowering you to make the best choices for your kids” and she shared her ideas with you in our live chat.

[CiL altcast_code=35773bc3a4/]

Cover of TIME magazine looking to be inflammatory about AP much? Dear goodness.

There’s nothing else on the minds of many Canadians today. The Stanley Cup playoffs are here after another grueling, 82-game season for NHL hockey teams. We’ll be having lots of coverage on Canada.com, with plenty of analysis along the way. Check out some predictions for the Stanley Cup Final (we know it’s too early but it’s just so much fun to speculate), as well as some numerical analysis of the season gone by and last night’s NHL draft lottery.

For the Blossom and Big Bang Theory fans among you, we’ll be having a live-chat with Blossom herself, Mayim Bialik, at 12 p.m. ET as she promotes her new book, Beyond The Sling: A Real-Life Guide to Raising Confident, Loving Children the Attachment Parenting Way.

The sickle is falling on jobs in the nation’s capital after the federal government released its most recent budget. The government is aiming to cut $5.2 billion in total, and some of those cuts are manifesting themselves at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, where 100 food safety inspectors are expected to lose their jobs. We also have coverage of the Tori Stafford trial and a look at Canadians’ swagger when filing their tax returns.